Jailbird
by HermioneMew
Summary: More like Jaildog...^_^ It's about Sirius and his escape from Azkaban...it's also my first songfic. Dedicated to Crane for providing me with the song, and the Black lovers because, well...it's for them! ^_^


Jailbird  
by h/m   
Dedicated to Crane, for introducing me to the song (and getting me obsessed, thanks a lot, Crane _)   
and the Sirius Black lovers, because they will probably be responsible for most or all of the reviews this gets...heh heh heh...   
  
A/N: "Mister Roboto" has more to do with Sirius Black than you would expect. You see, the "Kilroy" mentioned at the end of the song is a real person. Kilroy was falsely accused of murder, like Sirius, all because of prejudice.   
  
A man named Dr. Everett Righteous was deadly against rock 'n' roll, and he and his protestors started a riot at Kilroy's concert. At the end, one protestor was dead, and since Kilroy was the star of the show, he was instantly accused and carted off to a Japanese prison. Small robots called "Mr. Robotos" did all the work humans would normally do in a jail. The prisoners, all rock 'n' roll artists, were subject to mind control over cable airwaves. (It sounds unrealistic, but it can control your mind if you're sitting there for years and years and years.)   
  
A man named Jonathan Chance pitied Kilroy and jammed the station to replace the usual content with the outlawed footage of one of Kilroy's own songs. Inspired by the message, Kilroy disguised himself as a Mr. Roboto--like Sirius turned into a dog--and played to his advantage: the Robotos were not human, and therefore couldn't really do anything to stop him, if he played his cards right...   
  
Anyhoo, while Kilroy was still at large, Dennis DeYoung of Styx wrote this song, which represents Kilroy's thoughts as he escapes the prison. Weird, neh?   
  
I am NOT a Sirius fan, in case anybody is wondering...he's cooler in the 3rd book, I wish he really was evil, that'd make him more interesting...he he...sorry, I'm under influence of Draco-lovers...*ooga booga* Okay, okay, I'll wrap it up...tee hee...=)   
BTW, MR. ROBOTO IS COOL DOWNLOAD IT OFF NAPSTER OR GNUTELLA OR MACSTER OR WHATEVER THE FREEZE-DRIED WOMBATS YOU'VE GOT!   
ARTIST: STYX   
TITLE: MISTER ROBOTO   
ALBUM: [don't know! ^_^] I think it's "Kilroy Was Here" but I still don't know...*tra la la la la la*   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~END AUTHOR'S NOTE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Domo arigato Mr. Roboto  
Domo arigato Mr. Roboto   
Mata ah-oo hima de   
Domo arigato Mr. Roboto   
Higitsu wo shiri tai   
  
Sirius Black sat in his cell, delusional and apathic, as usual. He watched the Dementors' long, black hooded robes and was soon hypnotized by their silky movements. He snapped out of the trance and got back to thinking about his obsession of a few days...he had hit upon a marvelous solution to his predicament...it took twelve years, but he was going to do it. He'd finally found a way to escape.   
It wouldn't be easy. It was almost unbearably difficult to transform when surrounding by so much Dark power. Even thinking about it seemed overwhelming. But this obsession, it was like vinegar that sets the teeth on edge, a loose thread that scratches the skin, an unfinished thought that maddens the brain...he had to, just had to.   
Sirius had waited twelve years. He had time. Determination was stronger than any fortress, after all. How had he not figured this out? It was so simple, so laughingly simple...transform into a dog, slip between the bars, and he was Scot-free. So what if there were at least a hundred miles to swim from here to the nearest land? He could make it. He had built up a lot of endurance before and during Hogwarts...what could stop him?   
  
You're wond'ring who I am   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
Machine or mannequin   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
  
However, his plan for escape would take practice. He'd tried several times before, in desperation, to free himself...it didn't work, he would be shoved to the brink, then fall back...it was a simple process, really. You let the image of an animal take over your mind, push all thoughts into the darkness, and then it...happens. There was no other way to describe it.   
  
With parts made in Japan   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
I am the modren man   
I've got a secret I've been hiding under my skin   
My heart is human my blood is boiling my brain I.B.M.   
  
Sirius took a deep breath, backed off against the far wall of his cell, so as to be farther from the Dementors, and tried again. He let the great black dog overtake his thoughts...he tried to think like one. He tried to think of the dog as parts, not a whole. The furriness...the hulkiness...the ghostly, moon-like eyes...he could almost feel it happening, but...no. Another failure. Sirius collapsed on the floor, panting with the effort.   
And so passed the day, and well into the wee hours of the night, Sirius was trying again and again to smoothly pass from human to canine. There was just one way to get through it; with every passing failure, Sirius kept thinking: One more try...next try...just one, no more...   
Twelve years of darkness had taken a toll on Sirius' brain. He tried to call up a memory...a happy one. Resistance to the Dementors was vital to escaping. Of course...that was obvious. What could he remember? Could he remember roaming the grounds with James, Peter, and Remus? Fuzzy, yes...he put his hands to his temples and tried to drown the bad memories clouding his mind's eye...yes, there it was.   
  
So if you see me acting strangely don't be surprised   
I'm just a man who needed someone and somewhere to hide   
Somewhere to hide to keep me alive   
Just somewhere to hide to keep me alive   
  
He could remember himself walking, slowly, so as not to alert Apollyon Pringle...perhaps Snape or Lucius Malfoy was hiding somewhere, just itching to get seventy-five points taken from Gryffindor...breathless with excitement, Sirius felt James lift the Invisibility Cloak off the three of them--Prongs, Wormtail, and he, Padfoot--and they edged out onto the bedewed grounds. The Whomping Willow stood in the distance, housing Remus under it...although its branches were still as the lake, whose surface was free from the most miniscule ripple on this brilliant midautumn's night...   
Sirius stood back and watched. James dropped to all fours and quickly melted into the stag...Peter disappeared and below, on the ground, a fat rat righted itself, snout twitching...and then it was his turn. How had he transformed? He needed motivation, in other words, a light, happy feeling to guide him...what was it then? Ah, yes. Freedom.   
Freedom to roam the grounds, with the protection of being Animagi and an Invisibility Cloak...freedom to run wild beneath the crystal moon...freedom. That was it. Sirius closed his eyes again, and imagined himself free of this hellish place called Azkaban.   
  
I'm not a robot without emotions I'm not what you see   
I've come to help you with your problems so we can be free   
I'm not a hero I'm not a savior forget what you know   
I'm just a man whose circumstances went beyond his control   
  
It had worked. Sirius opened his eyes, cautiously, preparing to be disappointed again, but was startled to find it had finally worked. About time. It had been so very long since Sirius had done this...he walked a few times around the cell, trying to get used to walking on four paws...he edged towards the bars, sniffing ecstatically, then sliding on through.   
  
Beyond my control we all need control   
I need control we all need control   
I am the modren man   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
Who hides behind a mask   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
So no one else can see   
(Secret secret I've got a secret)   
My true identity  
  
He was out of the cell, now in a writhing sea of Dementors. The pain was duller now that he was a dog...he could throw it off more easily...Sirius began running, using his new-found agility to dodge in between and under the Dementors, the one word echoing in his head as regularly as his padded feet: Freedom. Freedom. Freedom.  
Finally, the exit. Sirius leaped up, caught the handle in his teeth, and it eased open. The door was never locked, as it didn't need to be. The prisoners would never make it...the few who had been innocent weren't Animagi, and didn't have the strength to transform with the Dementors all around, even if they had been Animagi...but Sirius, out of everyone, was free. Goodbye, torture. Goodbye, Azkaban. Now all that was left was to swim to the mainland...no easy task, but as Sirius stood there on the island, watching the waves lap the shore, he thought, no hard task, either.   
  
Domo arigato Mister Roboto domo domo   
Domo arigato Mister Roboto domo domo  
Domo arigato Mister Roboto domo domo   
Domo arigato Mister Roboto  
Domo arigato Mister Roboto   
  
Once he was off the island, there was no going back. It was that simple, really...everything was simpler than he had initially thought...but it all seemed so complicated when it had happened. There was chaos everywhere, Voldemort was at the height of his power, and Bartemius Crouch Sr. was working himself half to death trying to catch every Death Eater he could get at.   
Things had happened in a blur. First, there had been confusion everywhere, Sirius was caught in the middle of an argument; who would be James and Lily's Secret-Keeper? He volunteered, James said no, Dumbledore himself offered, but James still said no, they used Peter...Peter betrayed them...and then he was in Azkaban, without a trial...and now he was free, glorious free.   
  
Thank you very much Mister Roboto   
For doing the jobs that nobody wants to   
And thank you very much Mister Roboto   
For helping me escape just when I needed to   
  
Sirius' shaggy black coat was a hindrance in the torrential water, as it slowed him down and made him heavier. On the other hand, in his human form, he wouldn't be strong enough...and the fur also served to protect him from the cold. Either way, Sirius was already starting to feel woozy. There wasn't a drop of fresh water anywhere, and every few minutes, he had to dip his furry head underwater to wet his parched tongue, beaten dry by the ocean wind.   
His only hope to ever make it to land was to keep his chin up and his spirits running high. Positive energy...he needed some positive energy...some hope. He imagined himself proven innocent...perhaps he could go to Hogwarts at the end of the year and fulfill his duty as Harry's godfather...that would be nice...Harry could leave the Muggles and come live with him. But it would never happen unless he could get to shore. All he needed to do was cross the sea. It wasn't that much, really...not that much...  
  
Thank you thank you thank you   
I wanna thank you please thank you   
The problem's plain to see too much technology   
Machines to save our lives machines dehumanize   
  
Finally, Sirius could see land in the distance. This filled his wracked body with new hope and new strength, and at last, at long last, Sirius felt the ground beneath his paws again, and slowly, tiredly, dragged his wet and bedraggled self out of the sea. It was still night. In Azkaban, there had been no telling what time it was. A day was merely counted as a period of waking or sleeping, but there were no concrete measures.  
Sirius walked a little farther on the beach, farther from the ocean. He had had quite enough of it for now. There was a grassy hillock to the west. With his achy paws dragging halfheartedly on the ground, Sirius lumbered doggishly up the slope, where there was a dead, wintry, hickory tree. He flopped down by it and sank into a blissful dreamless sleep.   
  
The time has come at last   
To throw away this mask  
So everyone can see   
My true identity I'm Kilroy!  
Kilroy!   
Kilroy!   
Kilroy!  
  
End  
  
A/N: I was going to end this with something similar to, "And then, at that moment, Snuffles was free!" Teehee! Teehee! HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! Vhateva. =) You wanna 'nother one? I like writing Sirius fics...because you can write about Azkaban ^_^. 


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